


Werewolf Romance

by DevouringGourmet



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe-Werewloves, Blood and Injury, Eventual Relationships, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Were-Creatures, Werewolf!Akira, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-22
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-08-27 15:04:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16704796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DevouringGourmet/pseuds/DevouringGourmet
Summary: A Persona 5 AU inspired by Twilight, Wolf Children and other animal shapeshifting stories.Akira was living too far and deep in the countryside to be called in for prohabation for a mere assault record. But, he was exiled by his tribe for the trouble he brought. Eventually, Akira landed in Tokyo but never went to high school.One day, he met Haru and both of their lives completely changed...





	1. Chapter 1

One night, Haru went to a dinner party held in a luxurious hotel restaurant. There, her fiancé, Sugimura kept bragging and boasting about his greatness: having an amazing status and finding a beautiful girl as his fiancé.

There was nothing great about the man other than his ability to entertain people with his words. Even by knowing this, Haru could not break through the authority in his words because of the binding obligation her father forced on her. Ever since her father made connections in the political world, Haru’s life has been burden with more ‘chains’; ‘chains’ that bind her soul and heart more than ever before. And tonight is another one of the suffocating dinner parties she needed to go through. As her father’s daughter and that man’s fiancé.

When she decided it was late and that she really need to go home, Sugimura escorted her way to the hotel door. Unfortunately, Sugimura thinks that the night is still young and does not want Haru to leave his side just yet…And worse of all, no one was around whilst the party is still going on.

“You are my fiancé! You are going to be with me a little longer tonight!” Sugimura growled as he grabbed Haru by her wrist.

“No! Please, stop this!” Haru pleaded. She is on the verge of tears. And she knew that this scenario is not going to end well for her. No matter what she does, with her circumstances, nothing could come out good for her.

Until…

A hand reached out to Sugimura’s wrist, gripping on so tightly that Sugimura let go of Haru. Sugimura winced as he looked to the direction where his hand got pulled, seeing a young man in a waiter’s uniform. The young man looked somewhere around Haru’s age, but something about his demeanor showed off his maturity. He has unkempt black hair and glasses on. His face has a neutral expression, but his eyes looked unforgiving, glaring at Sugimura. Haru is very surprised at the turn of events. It is almost never she had been this lucky. The few things that she has been the most fortunate in her high school years is meeting Makoto as her friend and her rooftop garden.

“Who exactly are you!?” Sugimura angrily asked.

“Just a part-timer in this hotel.” The waiter coolly replied.

“You better release me right now. Or I will make sure your life will be in the depths of hell!” he threatened.

“Hmph!” Said the waiter, not seeming to care a word Sugimura said.  
Just as Haru hoped that things will not go any worse, her driver came.

“Good evening, Miss Haru. And good evening, young man. Thank you for the glass of water.”

The young waiter released his hand and bowed slightly to the driver. “Your welcome”

Her driver then shifted his gaze towards her and said, “I think it is time we should leave Miss Haru. I do not think your father would want any complaints from school.”

Sugimura then made his leave, whispering “You got lucky.” to Haru and left her to her driver. As she was about to leave the hotel for good, she turned her back to say thank you to the waiter. But he was gone. Her heart sank. She was relieved that the ordeal was over thanks to the efforts of the young waiter, but she was sad that she was not able to thank him.

It was not until next week when she saw him again.

 

Haru was on her way back from school as she planned to buy some seeds for her garden. She was walking down the street when she heard some cheers from a nearby Big Bang Burger. Haru looked through the window and saw a crowd formed around a young man with black fluffy hair. “Congratulations! You have conquered the Gravity Burger! Please come again soon!” said the lady with a timer. Haru not only realized that she has just witness one of the company’s three challenges taken down, the person who just accomplished such a feat was the one who saved her in the hotel.

The young man soon met her gaze, walked out and went towards her. “Hey. You look shocked. And you seem to have something you want to say to me.” Haru was indeed at a loss of words. Her mind was blank from the ‘impossible’ challenge the young man had just finished and is talking to her as if he had just finished a snack.

“Erm… Thank you for saving me the other night. And how did you finish that burger?”

The young man smirked. “I was hungry.”

“So, you basically wolfed it down?!”

The young man chuckled. “That’s one way to say that.”

Now Haru doesn’t know how to make out of this. Even if she wasn’t proud to be the daughter of the Big Bang Burger CEO, she was confident about the challenges being mostly unbeatable. Other than the ‘trained’ individuals who aim to be big eaters. Not by some thin-looking guy.

“Right then, I need to go to work. I am going to a flower shop in Shibuya. How about you, miss?”

 

The next few hours was the most surprisingly fun time she has experienced in a lifetime. She learnt that this boy named Akira was younger than her and knows quite a lot about flowers. She may have the upper hand, but his knowledge is impressive and even knew things that she has never known. He is charming as well, he would be popular with the girls if he gone to the same school as her. Maybe even Makoto would be charmed.

Ever since, she would occasionally think about Akira and her face brightens up like the Sun. She hoped to show Akira her garden and impress him.

Seeing Haru so bright, Makoto asked, “Did something good happen?” Haru then talked about Akira almost non-stop for a week to Makoto. How he saved her from Sugimura, how he knew so much about plants and how charming he looked. Haru always told Makoto she would like to introduce him to her.

“If I had known better, it seems that he has stolen your heart Haru.”

“More like eating my heart and mind away.” Said Haru.

 

However, Haru would never have thought to see Akira the third time in the worst way ever.

He was like a monster with golden eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I would like to share this story of mine from procrastinating too much by reading so many fanfics and books, and to escape from work. Anyways, due to the nature of my work in real life, I will be posting chapters once a month, or once every two months. I hope you guys can be patient with me.
> 
> Now then, I hope you enjoy this story!


	2. Akira's POV

Akira did not expect to see the girl from the hotel again. Nor did he ever thought that he would get so attached to her on the way to his part-time job. Yes, he did save the girl. He also did want to know how she was doing.

But getting too close is a bad thing if you are a monster. You see, Akira is a werewolf. He comes from an ancient bloodline and was told that he has inherited great strength his ancestors were once proud of in the stories of old. The elders think that he might have the power that made their ancestors hailed as gods known as the inugami or makami.

But one night, a man who had been harassing the townsfolk and nearby villages, threatened to cut down the forest he called home; came to the forest with a woman, drunk and unsteady on his feet. When Akira saw the man, he saw the man blabbering about how this forest is going to earn him praises and become someone on the top or something. The man suddenly changed his tone to a malicious one towards the woman. The woman pled the man to stop and was calling for help.

Seeing this, Akira charged silently towards the couple. Unknowingly, he transformed into a monstrous form. Akira pushed the man quietly and swiftly like a ninja, making the man lose his balance. What happened next all came down too quickly.

As soon as the man came to the ground, the moonlight shone on Akira’s monstrous form. The woman screamed. The dogs from the nearby town barked and howled. As Akira soon noticed the howling, his ears perked up. He can sense his fellow comrades around. Some of his distant family joined the howl. But he can sense the adults being fearful of him. Why?

He then looked down at his hands. Akira saw that his hands have changed into pitch black claws with some hazy, black or shadow aura oozing out of them. It was like a pair of demon claws. A few seconds later, he turned back to normal. Akira looked at the woman, closing her eyes and shaking in fear. He then saw the man bringing himself up.

“You brat! I’ll sue you!”

 

Soon, Akira was charged with assault by the local police. His tribe held a meeting about his predicament when he returned. The elders guessed that his power might be derived from the Black Wolf God. Some stories say that he might be a demon wolf, bringing disaster to both his kind and humans. Some say the black wolf was a great warrior and a protective guardian against evil. However, most of the members emphasized on how disaster fell in the past when most of their kind was wiped out by mankind. They pointed at Akira as a trigger to another disaster to their kind, causing their home in danger of destruction.

Akira felt depressed. He just wanted to do what was right. He never thought that things would come to a result in guilt. In the end, what is the right thing to do? Is he really a monster as they say? Akira could not understand anymore.

His tribe decided that Akira will be exiled to somewhere faraway. Akira was 15 at the time. So, they had to find someone to look after him. Akira soon found himself landed in Tokyo, the largest city in the country. To him, it was all too different. Tokyo was a foreign place, an urban forest with tall buildings and people EVERYWHERE. He felt very lost. But not long after, he made connections with many people in the city. He took up many jobs, learning many new skills and mostly, seeing the world. His experiences have opened up his mind, making his life in the forest really small. Akira did still miss his home sometimes. Especially since he has to wear a mask almost everyday to ensure everyone around him that he is human and not a monster.

His encounter with Haru was purely coincidental. At first, he did exactly what brought him to Tokyo by instinctively saving her. But he did not get into trouble when her ‘escort’ came to get her. As Akira recalled what happened with the woman back at home, he left the scene quickly, overwhelmed by his past trauma. But knowing that the girl was safe, he calmed down and get back on to his everyday life.

 

[One week later]

After his meal in the Big Bang Burger, he slurped his drink and saw a girl staring at him through the window. Recognizing her as the one he saved in the hotel, he put his drink away and left the shop. He was glad to see her doing fine and wanted to confirm how well she had been. When she said how he must have ‘wolfed’ down the burger, he burst out in laughter. What she said is quite accurate: he is a growing teenage werewolf after all. There was nowhere else that would give him as much food as he wanted, and in good price. He could have gone there at night when it is cheaper, but he was hungry. He could eat half a deer back at home right now.

Akira then talked with the girl on the way to work. He learnt that the girl is named Haru and is interested in gardening. She is so cute that he wanted to snuggle on her shoulder just beneath her hair. But he knows he can’t do that in public. Akira learnt how sweet as honey Haru is, wishing that he can get closer to her if it weren’t for his werewolf lineage.

(Note: When Akira was thinking the same thing again in his bedroom, he wags his wolf tail out of his pants)

 

Unfortunately, Akira never knew that Haru would be the first human to see him with his werewolf traits.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to give me suggestions and criticism.  
> I will be adding more details of Akira's background and abilities in future chapters.


	3. Their third encounter

Makoto sighed.

“What’s wrong, Mako-chan?” Haru asked.

“The principal wanted me to investigate the recent cases of extortion from our students. Apparently, some thugs have been threatening some of our students and have been causing a lot of trouble. There was a request to help solve the situation, so the principal have asked me to do this.” Makoto explained.

“Oh my.” Haru exclaimed.

“Be careful if you are around Shibuya. I heard that their main hub of activity is there.” Makoto warned.

“Thank you.” said Haru.

Then, Makoto smiled and asked: “Is that all you wanted to say?”

Haru is puzzled. “Huh?”

“I recall someone I have been hearing who is quite a gentleman and has a part-time job in Shibuya working with flowers.” teased Makoto.

Haru blushed.

 

After a few seconds, she replied: “Mako-chan!”

 

* * *

 

It is June and the weather has been humid. Haru and many girls in school find the weather quite troublesome when they try doing their hair. Maybe even Akira would have hard time with his frizzy hair, Haru thought. Then, she remembered what Makoto talked to her about Akira.

_“No, no, no. Me and Akira are just friends. I do find him charming, but he and I are…”_

She stopped. She looked back at how Akira has been cheering her up in her memories. How she had saved her that night, how he was so charming, how he has a shared interest in plants. To her, Akira is a charming, kind person. But, with her upcoming marriage in the picture, she could see that her relationship with Akira is going to make matters complicated.

_“I want to see him again, so that we can talk more about plants. That will cheer me up.”_

As Haru made her way to the train station, two men called to her. “Hey! You know a man in a white suit?” She nodded instinctively and soon regretted it. “You see, we remember seeing you the other day in the car with this man after he messed with us. We want you to come with us so that he can come talk to us.” Haru can see the men putting malicious looks on them. She cursed the man who is the cause of her recent troubles and claims to be his beloved. She wants the two men in front of her to somehow end up groveling on the ground so that they know that she cannot be messed with. But in reality, calling for help would not easily solve the situation as they can easily grab her and put her down.

 

“Hey! Watch out!”

Haru and the two men turn their eyes around, seeing two plastic bottles flying towards their direction. In a split second, somebody hold her hand. Haru turned around to see a boy, whispering: “Run.” Haru got pulled away by the boy, who she then recognized as Akira, away from the two men. “Hey!” It did not take long for the men to realize what had happened.

The situation has quickly turned into a game of chase.

After a few minutes, Akira and Haru have ran into a crowd near a crossing. Akira knew that their chase would eventually draw too much attention, causing both of them into trouble. He led Haru to a nearby alleyway. The alleyway is narrow and dark. Akira cursed himself for not thinking this through as they soon reached a dead end. Akira made sure Haru stayed behind him, ready to fight the men.

The men made the first move, they tried delivering a few blows on him but Akira either dodged them or parried them. Akira also made his move. He landed a few punches, but they are not very effective. He tried a number of feints, so that they would back off away from Haru. Gradually, the fight seems to be going nowhere. And the men also noticed that Akira is standing firmly, unfaltering. They tsked at how persistent this young man is. One of the men then reached for a glass bottle on the floor nearby. He smashed the glass bottle, turning it to a sharp weapon as he decided to change the flow of the fight. He charged at Akira and swing the broken bottle wildly. Seeing how drastic and fast the swings are, Akira struggled to read his movements and keep his pacing to dodge. Eventually, one of the swings slashed his upper arm. While Akira got distracted by his injury, the other man charged in and punched Akira at the face. The force was so strong that his glasses fell off. The man then landed another blow to his torso, pushing Akira away from them.

The pain shot through towards his brain, triggering the ‘darkness’ within him. His eyes turned golden yellow, with sharp black pupils. Yes, those eyes are exactly the symbolic eyes of a provoked wolf. Akira snarled at the men and charged towards them at great force. In almost an instant, Akira gave them a few quicker, stronger blows, making the men lose conscious. Akira growled, eyeing them to make sure that DON’T get up. Akira was unaware that his fangs and claws are showing, nor the fact that Haru is still at his side watching him becoming different.

“Akira-kun...?”

Akira gave a low growl as he turned around towards Haru whilst his eyes glow yellow and his teeth (and fangs) gritting in anger.

When Akira saw Haru’s frightened face, he recalled how that woman reacted that night. He immediately realized that he has done it again.

Feeling remorseful, he took two deep breaths as he turned back to his human form. As soon as he relaxed his body, the pain reverberated to his head. He quietly winced, putting his hand on his injured arm. Akira then slowly moved towards the wall and leaned against it with his back, eventually sliding downwards into a sitting position with his eyes closed.

At that moment, Haru walked towards Akira and crouched down beside him. She reached out her hand towards his arm, looking at the injury. Akira meekly opened his eyes, looking at Haru.

 

 _“Don’t come close to me.”_ He thought.

Then, Haru reached to her bag, looking for something. And in no time, Haru took out a handkerchief and began to use it to tend his arm.

_“Why?"_

Right after that line of thought, Haru tied the handkerchief tightly.

“Hgh!”

“There, this should do. I am sorry I can’t do anything else.” Said Haru.

Akira took a few deep breaths.

He asked: “Aren’t you afraid of me?”

Haru took a moment to think. “I was. But, you are hurt. You saved me. I couldn’t ignore that.”

Akira took another deep breath. “Thanks.”

“No, I should be thanking you, Akira-kun.”

While Haru thanked Akira, Akira looked down at Haru’s wrist, seeing red markings on it. He realized his grip on her earlier made the marks, feeling very sorry. He tried to lean forward, but the pain at his torso stopped him. Fortunately, it was not straight at the gut, although the pain really hurts.

“Ack!”

“Are you alright? We should get you to the doctor’s.”

“Your wrist…does it hurt?” He muttered.

Haru looked down at her wrist. “No. It doesn’t.”

Akira decided that he should trust her words for the time being and think about all of this later. “Let’s go to Yongen-Jaya. I know a doctor there.”

 

* * *

 

After much persuasion, Haru managed to get Akira to ride a taxi to the doctor’s. If not, the blood from his arm would attract too much attention and would eventually get them both into trouble. What she did not see coming, was how the doctor is not your typical, friendly looking doctor. She has dyed blue hair, a studded choker and a short black dress under her white coat. She looks very wild. But, when Haru saw the doctor looking after Akira’s injuries, she does not seem to be any different from the doctors she has known.

For Akira, it is fortunate that Takemi is not too nosy and is fulfilling the deal he made with her: to help her make medicine from the knowledge learnt from his home and testing the meds, while he learns more about modern medicine and biology. Takemi also offers to help out whenever he needs any medical supplies or medical assistance with a discount. She doesn’t know about his werewolf background, but his nose and knowledge about medicine from home prove to be helpful.

“There. All done. I am sure you will be fine in a day or three.”

“Thank you, sensei.”

“Um, I can pay the bills for you Akira-kun.”

“Huh? No, it will be fine.”

“But those injuries are because of me.”

“Hmmm~ Is that so, guinea pig.” Akira is speechless. He did not know what to say. He could pay Takemi at a discounted price from their deal. But he doesn’t know how to tell Haru about it. Much less persuade her about him paying instead.

Understanding Akira’s intention, Takemi decided to intervene.  
“Tell you what young lady. You will pay the money to him. In a date.”

“Eh?!” They both exclaimed.

“That way, things will be easier, no?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work has just slowed down a bit so I am posting this chapter just to make progress.  
> My schedule is going to be very irregular, so be patient with me please.
> 
> Feel free to give me any comments or criticisms about my writing.
> 
> (Anyways, Akira is going in places! Ya-hoo! Its going to be his first date!  
> You gonna go far, kid!)


	4. The date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Okumura Haru week!  
> Felt hyped to write this chapter because of this and the Smash Bros announcement.
> 
> The chapter might be flawed, but do tell me what I can improve and please enjoy what I have got.

 

* * *

 

“Are you sure, Haru?” Akira asked, looking at Haru intensely.

 

“Yes, I am sure.” reassured Haru with a face of confidence.

 

 

“Alright.” And with that, Akira pressed the buzzer for the waiter/ waitress to come.

 

“I will have the special hamburg steak set with demi-glace sauce, with bread and soup please. Also, one omelette rice with the chocolate and coffee dessert combo. I will be going for the drink bar, please. Thank you.”

 

 _“As expected from a boy.”_ Haru thought.

 

Haru and Akira are in a diner as a result from their last encounter. They eventually decided that Haru will pay Akira by treating him to a meal on Sunday.

 

When the food arrived, Akira gave his thanks for the meal and dived straight first to the large hamburger steak he ordered. Haru wondered how this thin boy is able to maintain his current physique with all that food. She recalled the time when she saw Akira finishing the Big Bang Burger challenge where she is still unable to comprehend how he did it. On top of that, he has apparently been doing the large burgers more than once. All he did was to show his 2nd mate badge to redo the challenges repeatedly. Its not like any of the employees nor the customers would remember his face. Akira claims that he goes for the challenges once every two or three months since he doesn’t want to give much stress to the staff. Thank goodness for that.

 

 

“Phew~ Thanks for the meal.” Akira smiled.

 

Haru giggled softly. It has been a long time since she had a happy, fun meal like this. Maybe she should invite Makoto out for food one day when she is less busy. As for Akira, he has never been so satisfied with the food portions other than those burgers. He feels an urge to have his tail out wagging.

 

After Haru finished her tea, she asked Akira, “Where should we go next?”

 

“Hm…Wherever you like.”

 

“As I have said before, I will be paying you for helping me today. So, choose something that you want to do.”

 

 _This will be a tough one._ Akira had hardly ever been treated this nice, especially since he had been exiled from home. Even though there were high expectations for him, Akira was an estranged boy and did not often mingle with groups. But looking at Haru’s determined face, he is not sure about turning her down. At the same time, he wants to do something that would Haru enjoy doing as well. On that line of thought, Akira has an idea.

 

And with that, he puts his signature smirk on his face.

* * *

 

Crouching down, Haru smiles as she looks at the flowers in full bloom. Akira has brought her to a park to see some seasonal flowers. She finds it different from seeing the flowers in a garden or at a florist’s. Probably because she is also seeing them with a friend. At that moment, Haru felt at peace. She doesn’t need to be bothered by her problems, she is free even if it is just for the day. Haru took in the wondrous scent of the flowers, enjoying their beauty.

 

Later, while Haru walked alongside Akira on the footpath, she pondered about the events happened last time when Akira took down the two harassers all by himself. She is certain about the changes Akira went through. Haru understand people can change in the heat of a moment, but what happened then was definitely not normal. On top of that, somewhere in her heart just couldn’t contain the curiosity. She wanted to know.

 

When they both decided to sit down for a bit on the bench. Haru made her move. “Now then. Can you tell me what exactly happened to you that day when you were fighting?” Akira widened his eyes in surprise.

 

“I know I was not seeing things that day. So, tell me the truth, Akira-kun.” She continued. After taking a moment to think, Akira decided to tell Haru everything, thinking this might be a good chance to cut all ties with her.

 

“I am a monster with an assault record. I hurt people.” Akira said bluntly. “That is why after today, we…shouldn’t be seeing each other again.” Instantly, the air grew heavy. Haru has her mouth slightly opened, trying to find the words to say. She shifted towards Akira's field of sight, looking at Akira by the eyes while she tries to squeeze some words out from her heart to the heavy atmosphere. “That is not true. You have saved me twice. You may have hurt others in the process. Even so, you are not a bad person.”

 

Akira blinked. Slowly, he puts a smile on his face. “Wish I can hear such words to me more often.”

 

“So, what exactly happened to you during that fight?”

 

“You are quite the princess.” Akira sighed while keeping a smile on his face. He paused for a while, and said, “I am a werewolf.”

 

“Eh?”

 

“I meant it, literally.”

 

“So, those eyes, they were eyes of a wolf?”

 

Akira nodded.

 

“I was hoping I won’t let myself repeat the same mistake again. But…I couldn’t.” Akira began to tell Haru how he got himself into his current situation: how he tried to do the right thing by saving others but ended up in an assault record and exile from home. Hence making part-time jobs necessary and eventually meeting Haru. Akira told Haru his abilities are “different” in his werewolf tribe, so he could only figure it out himself.

 

“What about your parents? Do they have any clues about your powers?”

 

Akira shook his head. “They passed away. I didn’t show any signs before they left. They might be aware of it, but they didn’t tell me anything specific about my powers. The only thing I know is that it’s something ancient. The elders told me my powers are strong enough to be rivalled with what is known in stories: the power of the wolves known as Gods or guardian spirits. More commonly known as the inugami. Apparently, I am from the bloodline of these ancient wolves.”

 

Akira paused for a moment.

 

“Sorry, I didn’t want to bring the mood down. I think we should try seeing each other less. I really don’t want to bring you any trouble.”

 

Haru puts her hand on Akira's hand. "It will be fine. When I was young, I watched a lot of hero shows and read their stories. You remind me of the stories where they struggle controlling their powers. But, from what I have been hearing, this power comes up whenever you help someone. So, as long as your actions mean good, I think I will be alright."

 

Akira turn his hand around to grip Haru's hand. "Thank you."

 

Unknown to Haru, Akira is supressing his urge to rub his face against her face as a werewolf would do. But, right now, expressing his gratitude verbally is the best course of action. One day, he thought, he would like to open up to Haru with his werewolf traits. Especially since she has accepted what he is.


	5. Tokyo blues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is inspired by the first two pages of the manga Persona 5: Mementos Mission. Highly recommend you readers to look at these two pages before starting this chapter to get a visual of the starting scene.
> 
> Also, a few thanks to people and Musical life pointing out a few problems in the previous chapters. Had edited a bit on the previous chapters.

 

Drip, drip, drip.

“..148, 149…150!”

There were sweat drops falling as if water is leaking from the ceiling, forming a small puddle on the floor. This was all from Akira doing pull ups by using the wooden beams on his celling. When he decided to end, he landed on his feet and grabbed the kettle to pour hot water into a siphon. Whilst he left the coffee dripping, Akira grabbed a towel to wipe his sweat off. Then he poured the coffee into his cup and drank it to his refreshment.

 

“Nothing beats a cup of coffee after a workout.”

 

Even before coming to Tokyo, Akira has been training to become a strong adult werewolf. It is a norm in the werewolf community to be strong for both males and females, in order to protect each other in times of crises. Moreover, they have hunting practices and fighting competitions. Akira may be (was) the strongest amongst his age group, but he was treated as a shadow back in the tribe, even though the tribe acknowledges his strength and had high expectations of him. Akira only shows his strength in public in the social fighting displays that requires all members to participate annually so as to ascertain their social status. The social fights are a socializing event in the tribe which is like a fighting festival. It’s also a time where males would try bet their chances in getting a romantic partner or trivial bets such as to have the loser take part in some casual punishment game.

 

Akira is trained by the elders and some of the alphas for ancient fighting skills, in hopes to keep the ancient bloodline and knowledge going. However, sometimes he felt disconnected with the tribe. Its like they aren’t trying to understand him, about his interests and his thoughts. They do care about him, just not close enough. But fortunately and ironically, this lack of care allowed Akira to do whatever outside of training times. He reads a lot of books in the nearby town library to learn whatever he can, he learns about plants with the tribe’s herbalist and ventures around like a lone wolf. Ultimately, this behaviour led him to that incident.

 

Eventually, Akira was taken in by Sojiro when he was exiled to Tokyo. Sojiro was an acquaintance of an acquaintance of his parents. To explain, Akira’s parents had friends in the nearby town he often visits. They treated him nicely whenever they see each other. When they heard he had nowhere to go, they decided to entrust Akira to Sojiro, telling him going to Tokyo would be an experience-of-a-lifetime. Since the elders are also acquainted with some of the townspeople, they agreed on having Akira choose to stay in Tokyo upon that suggestion, trusting Akira would be better off living there. Even though it is certain hell for a werewolf. And a part of him thinks that this is because nobody knows what to do with a criminal other than disconnections.

 

Living in Tokyo means surrounded by tall buildings, humans, lights and noises, so it is quite overwhelming and scary. Also, it means no howling, no wolf-play and being strictly human. Despite not being able to run around in open spaces as before in the woods or on the grass plains, he eventually learnt to enjoy his new city life. Learning to appreciate coffee is one of these aspects. Akira still enjoys good old Japanese tea, but coffee is now the way to start his day after a workout.

 

After his morning routine, he helped Sojiro with the morning preparations for the café. Then, he prepared himself to go out.

 

“Hey, Akira! Remember to treat me something delicious tonight for dinner!”

Morgana is a cat-yokai who has been guiding through his life in Tokyo, particularly teaching him how to control his powers. Somehow, Akira realises his powers allow him to extinguish distortions in the hearts of people with his claws. This ability was documented in numerous old texts about yokai, including Akira’s ancestors. Although Akira has never known any werewolf in modern day to have such an ability. Morgana suspects the current human society has been affecting the abilities of many yokai/demons in Japan since he has been figuring out how to transform into a human. Hence, as a fellow yokai and demon, Morgana has been a mentor in how to control his power and ‘exorcize’ these distortions, while they try and look for clues to grasp human transformation.

 

Usually, Akira spends his days doing part-time jobs, dealing with distortions in human hearts or reading books. Today was different. Akira took the train to the Aoi-yome station and is heading towards to school, which feels weird. Or maybe he just needs to get used to it somehow.

 

Arriving at Shujin Academy, Akira stealthily made his way into the school grounds and climbed his way up to the school rooftop. The weather was cloudy and humid, which was good because he could meet Haru today on the rooftop when she comes to tend the garden. He took out a book to read as he waits for Haru to come.

 

When Haru arrived, he jumped up and then down towards where Haru is. The first time he came, they discussed a variety of gardening related topics. Then, he just silently stared at her from a distance like a watchdog while she was immersed with her personal touches to the garden. Soon, seeing how much she enjoyed gardening became a joyful sight to see and made him wanting to visit her again.

 

After exchanging a few words, Haru clasped her hand together and said, “By the way, when I was looking at brushes for your fur, I was surprised to see so many varieties that I didn’t know which to choose!” Haru exclaimed with a smile. Akira inwardly felt uncomfortable at Haru’s statement. The last time they saw each other, Akira let himself partially transformed with his wolf ears up. The humid weather made Akira wanted to scratch himself so badly he loosened up to be in his werewolf form. As a result, a lot of his black fur strands were scattered around the rooftop.

 

It was only visible when Haru bend down to start her gardening work. But Haru got worried about it and suggested she would brush him. And now Akira doesn’t know what to do. He has been managing his fur by himself and letting a girl brushing him is a whole new experience.

 

Seeing how eager Haru is, Akira thought to himself: _I can’t let Haru brush my whole body. I can’t reject her either. Which part of me should I let her brush?_

_The head? The back? The tail?_

 

 

His decision: his head. Because it would be a similar experience to a salon trip.

 

Haru took his proposal and agreed. Akira took off his glasses and transformed parts of his head. He didn’t transform his face, but his fur grew and made him look like having sideburns. His wolf ears propped up. His neck enclosed with fur. At the end of it, his current appearance looks a little bit beastly.

 

Haru prompted Akira to sit down on a chair, took her new brush and started brushing from behind. While Haru was brushing him, Akira was silent. Haru is right behind him! So close! And...it actually feels quite good to have someone brush his fur.

 

After a while, Haru asked, “How is it?”

“Its good.”

 

“I am glad to hear that.” Haru smiled.

 

As Haru stroke and brushed his fur, she thought to herself, is this similar how mother would feel like when brushing my hair?

 

Coincidentally, Akira thought about his mother as well. He was quite young since he last had someone to brush his fur where his mother usually helped him.

 

Moments later, Haru started to fiddle with one of Akira’s wolf ears. At first, the ear would twitch when her fingers tried try to play with it, as if the ear rejected any sort of touch. Then, she started to scratch the base of the ear. The action felt like forever. Meanwhile, Akira was beginning to melt away from the comfortable sensation. He moved his head with his face facing upwards, lowering the position of his ears. The gesture could easily be interpreted as ‘More, please’. The scratching then got ‘erratic’, causing Akira to let out a wolf whine/ moan. Right after that moment…..

 

_Ding! Dong! Ding! Dong!_

_This is a student council announcement. Please would all students…._

 

The sudden sound made Haru widened her eyes in shock. It was like waking up from a daydream and realising the reality of your surroundings. She felt quite embarrassed. She was being so intimate with Akira! What was she thinking! No, more like why her mind was blank and unable to register the situation she has brought herself into.

 

“Erm…… Let’s stop here for today.” Said Haru bashfully.

“Yeah.” Akira replied.

 

 _That was so close!!! I almost went into full transformation. I might have gone and licked Haru if it weren’t for that announcement. She WOULD NOT have liked that._ Akira thought.

The two were unable to look at each other in the face for a while as their faces blushed with red. Flustered, Haru rushed to sort out the garden and part ways with Akira.

 

 

That night, Akira was in a daze while he was inside the public bath. His face was red from the thought of Haru and probably from the hot water. He was unable to notice how long he had stayed in the hot water. Soon after he got to his bed, he passed out like a light due to the steam coming out of his head.

 

On the other hand, as Morgana went up to his bed, he wondered how Akira got so burned out even though it is just the beginning of summer when the heatwaves have not arrived yet.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you have enjoyed this chapter. I am not too confident on the wording I have used so some feedback would be appreciated, thank you!


	6. Stealthy missions in Shibuya

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope I have done Makoto's character justice. By the way, any suggestions on the chapter title? It is a bit random, I admit.

 

Makoto knew that there was something odd about this investigation request, but she wanted to be a supportive student council president for the student body. Within 2 weeks, she had gathered a fundamental understanding of the group she has to deal with. It was an organised crime that uses young people to traffic drugs and other illegal items.

 

One cloudy day in June, she went to Shibuya to find clues. Since her father was a part of the police force, she had heard of stories about the crimes that have occurred here in the past. Even her sister mumbles about how terrible the criminal activity has been at times in Shibuya in the last 5 years. Despite this, she couldn’t stop herself from her desire to prove herself ‘useful’.

Hence Makoto planned to find and approach the people and work her way up to find the main, responsible perpetrator. 

With a stroke of luck, she has stumbled upon a group of thugs who approached her to introduce her to a job. However due to a bad choice of words from asking for more details, she made them irritated and was in motion to lay their hands on her.

She was ready to defend herself when suddenly, out of nowhere, a black figure lunged a flying kick at one of the men. The black figure turned out to be a tall young man.

Makoto looked at the young man as the alleyway street fight unfolded. There was this radiating animosity coming out from him. His grey eyes were like steel that can cut anything in its way. With the black framed glasses, he looked like the cunning, smart yakuza she has seen in her favourite movies.

All in all, his intense ‘bloodlust’ made Makoto shiver. Even worse, seeing him so used to violence and fighting made her wanted to run away. Instead, she stood there in silence as a spectator of this fight.

 

When the fight came to an end, the young man turned his head to Makoto with red-blood looking eyes and slowly said, “Hey. You should be careful. You’ll never know when violence target young ladies like you.” To Makoto, that was the most terrifying and threatening words she had heard from outside of her family and her favourite yakuza films. It sounded like he was threatening her and could harm her at any time. Makoto took her chances without much thought and left.

 

In the near future, she looked back at that moment numerous times to figure out why did she took those decisions and actions.

 

* * *

 

About a week later, Makoto left the school earlier than usual when she saw an unusual sight.

 

_That’s Haru. But who and why is there a guy with her!?_

Then, she realised that the guy was the same guy she met at the alleyway. The same one who was fighting like crazy in the Shibuya alleyway. Alarm bells went off in Makoto’s head.

_He is probably a bad guy trying do rope Haru down with some horrible scheme. I need to make sure she is not going to be harmed!_

 

Determined, Makoto decided to stalk the pair while analysing his character.

 

15 minutes later…

_This guy is being way too friendly with Haru. Its like if he is her…_

Then, the realisation hit her hard. This guy was the one she has been hearing about!

_This guy is charming? What are you talking about, Haru! There is something suspicious about this guy! Don’t you see it!?_

_No, wait. This must be his scheme._

 

_I have got to protect Haru! For that, I shall observe this guy’s every, single move._

 

And that is how Makoto has Akira locked on as an enemy with her fiery red-eyed glare.

* * *

 

One day, Haru walked down to a fancy area of Shibuya with Akira. "Wow. This place looks different." said Akira.

Haru giggled in response. "This area is bit more high-end, not like Ginza though. I have been hearing that there is a really good cafe, even my friend recommended me to go as well. Also, it seems like that they do high quality coffee and has been very popular amongst coffee enthusiasts." Akira quirked an eyebrow. "You are interested in coffee?" "Yes. I have been recently trying...."

 

Meanwhile, at a distance, Makoto stealthily stalked the pair with tired eyes.

_Fufufu. All according to plan._

_The manga I have bought recently mentioned about how boys become a nervous wreck when they come to places like this. So, I got Haru interested in inviting that guy into visiting this high-class café together for a date._

_I have found out that this café is doing a limited-time special luxury cake set, accompanied with a house-blend coffee. To enjoy their menu here, you would need to have a refined, mature mindset and palette to understand the beauty of it. I doubt that guy will be able to appreciate coffee and impress Haru in here. As far as I know, the guys back in Shujin aren’t that interested in coffee. (Biased info)_

_Also, being in this high-class café requires skill in table-manners and dealing the high-class people of Tokyo. Haru would have probably been avoiding places like this just to match that guy’s pace, but not today!_

_A delinquent like him will never be able to deal with that peer pressure with the given situation. This strategy will show Haru his true form._

As predicted, Haru and Akira had ordered some cakes and coffee.

 

Unfortunately for Makoto, Akira has been under the tutelage of Sojiro, a master barista, so he showed great appreciation and knowledge about coffee while conversing with Haru. And one other thing, when eating and drinking coffee, Akira was showing graceful movements like a high-class gentleman. Only, he was not wearing a suit or any formal clothing, but a casual white button-up shirt.

So, instead of having him making a fool and embarrassment of himself, Makoto gave an opportunity for Akira to show off and impress Haru, making Makoto very frustrated.

 

 "Why!? This does not make sense! Where did I go wrong?" Makoto questioned the situation as if she had made an incomprehensible mistake in an exam.

(*************************************)

 

Somewhere in Shibuya...

 

"Tsk! That cheeky bastard had to come in and interrupt our work! Just a little more, then we could have coaxed the little Nijima sister to come with us!"

 

"Yeah! And our boss could have the lady prosecutor under his control and become bigwigs in the mafia world! I mean, no mafia has done that before, right?"

 

"Why are you asking me!? I don’t do history!"

 

"Enough!"

(Silence)

"What we need to do, is to make sure we can get our hands on the young Nijima next time, without fail."

 


End file.
